New York Has Serious Concerns With Chick-fil-A

[Towlie]

Why the nation's most popular chicken chain is not a great fit for New York's highway rest stops.

Rest areas along the New York State Thruway are currently undergoing a $450 million redesign. That project involves removing all McDonald’s restaurants and adding Chick-fil-A, among other chains, to several of the rest areas that punctuate the 500-mile highway system, which connects New York City and Buffalo by way of Albany. The McDonald’s closures were meant to provide “updated restaurant concepts” to these rest areas. However, it’s quickly becoming apparent that Chick-fil-A will present obstacles to highway drivers throughout the state.

Chick-fil-A, of course, is famously closed on Sundays, a nod to its founder’s religious beliefs. But Sunday isn’t just when many folks go to church—it’s a notoriously heavy traffic day, with a lot of travelers using Sundays to head back home from weekend trips. When it was announced that Chick-fil-A was being added to rest areas along the Thruway, it seems some New Yorkers erroneously assumed that the restaurants be open on Sundays, despite the chain’s longstanding policy. That would just make good sense at a rest stop, right?

[wrong]

more...

[niyad]

1. Whose bright idea was this? And how are they tied to that junk food?

[peppertree]

7. Smells of 'mordida'

"The bite" - and I don't mean the chicken.

[tanyev]

2. Good grief, even gawd-fearin', Chick-fil-A lovin' people travel on Sundays.

Whose boneheaded idea was this?

[rurallib]

18. They can travel on Sundays because they know they have the day off

[BComplex]

34. A right wing republican idea....someone in the mix is acting out for "the cause".

Lots of my friends won't darken Chick-fil-a's doors due to the right wing ownership and push.

[Diamond_Dog]

3. That's just a really bad idea.

[Historic NY]

4. When you actually look at the map there aren't many choices if your heading

west from this rest area....

https://www.thruway.ny.gov/travelers/travelplazas/index.cgi]

[Alexander Of Assyria]

5. Do highways really need so many places to eat bad food...and then sit for hours after?

Just places to rest and take a piss would be ok.

[NullTuples]

8. They will be needed as electric vehicles take over but before they are as convenient as carbonfuel.

[appleannie1]

17. Have you ever traveled with a car full of hungry kids?

We had 7 kids and traveling with a trunk full of suitcases, there is no room for a cooler. Plus, if you are diabetic, you have to eat regular meals or risk passing out. That is not a good thing and eating a candy bar to raise your sugar is not really a good thing.

[Auggie]

6. I'd rather look for decent family diners a few miles off the thruway ...

than support Chick-fil-A.

[niyad]

9. I would rather have my blood sugar crash than eat there.

[flying_wahini]

10. Screw chick fil a

I’d starve first.

[Shipwack]

11. Seems more like a Chick-Fil-A problem than a state concern...

I can’t read the article right now, sorry for any errors…

It depends on the deal, but if Chick is paying the state for a lease, then it shouldn’t matter what their hours are. Chick might lose money, but that’s their business plan and it’s worked out for them all these years. The drivers will be mildly inconvenienced, but there will be other eateries there.

If the state gets a cut of revenue, that’s a different story. That would mean that they were idiots. Who was in charge of vetting the restaurants, or setting up the parameters for who would be allowed to vie for a spot?

For the record, I despise Chicks food and corporate attitude.

[appleannie1]

14. If you had been able to read the article you would have realized the only other options

were Starbucks and a convenience store. That might serve if you are into cold, stale, packaged sandwiches or sweet rolls but if you want a meal you have to leave the toll road and hunt for something else. That usually means paying more for the toll.

[sl8]

32. Is the state's only obligation to make money from the deal?

Last edited Thu May 4, 2023, 01:00 PM - Edit history (1)

Or do they also have some obligation to the drivers/customers on their toll road?

[appleannie1]

12. NY is a neighboring state. I guess I will have to pack a lunch when I travel there.

I have to limit my salt intake. I have only eaten there once, in South Carolina, when it was the only place at a rest area. I only ate one bite of their sandwich because it tasted like a salt block to me and I knew if I ate it I would not be able to get into my shoes in the morning my feet would be so swollen.
The other reason is their stance on the LBGTQ community, and their not allowing women employees access to paid birth control.
I have 3 LBGTQ grandchildren and will be damned if I am going to add to their profit margin by eating at their chicken place nor at Hobby Lobby. If I need something sold at a craft store, I go to Michael's now that the local hobby shop went out of business.

[getagrip_already]

13. Maybe they should look to italy.....

I was gobsmacked by the quality of the food at res stops in Italy. IT would be worth eating even if it wasn't a rest stop.

Plenty of fresh veggies, fresh baked breads, lots of choices.

Closed on Sundays? A nonstandard from an rfp standard.

[appleannie1]

15. The same applies to France.

[pandr32]

21. We have a corporate fast-food problem here.

We also have a Big Food problem that centralizes most of our food sources.
We have animal suffering, more than our share of pollution, and a huge population of obese people.
Our food culture is pretty bad.
And religious wackos--we have more than our share of them, too

[multigraincracker]

22. When I was in Italy, I found

the coffee out of machines much better than the best Starbucks.

[NJCher]

26. yep, no excuse

for unhealthy food.

The RG, who lived in Italy and France for 20+ years, says that Americans simply don't think of food in the same way most French and Italians do. He likes to tell the store of shopping in a French market. An older lady was selecting vegetables in proximity to the RG, who is very careful with his selections. Some other shopper tossed a vegetable back in the bin, possibly bruising it.

His fellow shopper looked at the RG and said with disgust, "No respect for the food! None!"

I always think of that story when I see shopper throwing vegetables and fruits around.

[Siwsan]

19. They are opening on in Flint Township

I've never eaten there. I never will.

[Wednesdays]

30. Eat at Halo Burger!

If you want fast food. I go there every time I visit the area.

[Siwsan]

31. Of course!!!

There is one just down the road.

The BEST burgers, IMHO, are at 'The Torch' in downtown Flint. Absolutely phenomenal.

[littlemissmartypants]

20. It's more satisfying to pack your own food. You save money & can eat exactly what you want.

[multigraincracker]

23. +100

I always, at the least pack my own spring water out of my own tested well. Try best I can to prepare something like nuts and fruits for travel. Cans of water packed sardines for protein. Save money and better for my health.

[littlemissmartypants]

25. Exactly! nt

[NJCher]

27. not to mention

you can be sure of the cleanliness standards.

[multigraincracker]

28. My new nurse wife is

helping me with my bad habits.

[FoxNewsSucks]

24. Fuck chick-crap-a

And the officials who made any deal with them.

I'm sick of seeing all the fast-food crowding out good choices anyway, but especially those rightwing religious freaks.

[modrepub]

29. Friggin Food Truck Sunday

Let a couple of food truck set up at the rest stops on Sundays. Food is probably better and you stimulate the local economy.

[Danascot]

33. I was saddened to see

that they were demolishing the handsome Adirondack style rest stops. Maybe some needed sprucing up but in general they were fine and served their intended purpose. It's a shame they ended up in the landfill. And when they closed them for demolition there were long stretches of road with no food or rest rooms ... real value for those exorbitant tolls!








Now I see the new ones have all the character and charm of a shipping container. Plus they are apparently smaller so more crowded (perfect for the next pandemic!). And the major food option will be closed on Sunday. What a freakin' cluster f**k!








Maybe I'm wrong about the the new ones having no character or history. Some look a lot like the original 1950s era rest stops.

[Skittles]

35. I cannot stand even the smell of Chik Fil A

I absolutely do not get their popularity

[Farmer-Rick]

36. Why can't they be open on Sunday?

I don't get it. Lots of Christian places are open on Sundays....like churches.

Stupid idea to be closed during the weekend. Many Christians even eat out on Sundays.